tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25477582999393331072015-01-07T12:20:33.347-08:00The 3 Rs of Education: Respect, Reality, Reason3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.comBlogger232125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-32028259316156489862015-01-07T09:42:00.001-08:002015-01-07T12:20:33.364-08:00weekly linksWeekly links (Or monthly links at this point...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.connectedcalifornia.org/linked_learning">cradle to grave california</a>&nbsp;(&lt; thats a link right there) connect ed has linked learning, part of California's P20 crafle to grave data collection on children.<br /><br />Related to it is&nbsp;<a href="http://linkedlearning.org/about/">linked&nbsp;</a>learning which is all new to me. Ok well I knew California had to have some cradle to career aspects but I had yet to find concrete evidence.<br /><br />Anyway I found both those links from CommonCoreDiva and her blog/article at&nbsp;<a href="https://commoncorediva.wordpress.com/2015/01/07/wybi-wednesday-icaps-common-core-and-more/">common core diva</a><br /><br />Sure....gettig more kids to complete high school is awesome. But using something everyone can rally behind (right? Increasing graduation rates, yes please!)" But dangling the carrot and influencing "warm fuzzies" and emotions of everyone is a propahanda tactic and hiding behind good will is social efficiency and probably some "lining the coffers" for the school to prison pipeline. Little Jacob stole milk money in first grade and listened to heavy metal in high school so he is likely to go to prison, best not encourage college, and Emma wants to be a physicist but she borrows when subtracting instead of using the laboriois common core method, thus, she failed third grade math so put her on the career path of dishwasher..... here is one more bit about it..<br /><br />...what happens if there is a data security breach like happemed at Target or Home Depot or Amazom or... the list goes on. Be afraid. Heres the link,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2014/05/data-mining-your-children-106676_Page2.html">here it is.</a><br /><a name='more'></a>3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-29543637531447653192014-12-09T16:52:00.001-08:002014-12-09T16:52:12.524-08:00interview with a vampireA school district near me has teachers who are seriously threatening a strike over class size and pay. I have been a teacher and am all about class size reduction (16 per class. Believe me. Its the perfect number, and test scores proving otherwise are bunk, but that is another topic). I do think teaching is often an under-respected profession. But. A big but. (Yes this is not proper English, carry on.) When at least in my own dostrict, children ard using the same textbooks I used in middle school and the district is in violation, with double the ed code/ by law caseload of special ed preschool students, I can say this - schools need the money. Schools need "fixing". More money with the same practices, less money with the same practices, more money for teachers, it won't work until we hit reboot on the entire system.<br /><br />Wait where was I going here?<br /><br />Ah yes, interview with the vampire. This district near me is hiring substitutes to cross the line; at first, people with a BA degree and hopefully CBEST, the pre-req to suhstitute teach. Then, honestly, whoever, or just smooshing two hundred kids into the auditorium with one substitute and a movie. They are begging parents to send their kids to school because they cannot afford to lose ADA (attendance funding) even though the kids will be under-taught and under-supervised. Perhaps the subs they hire after the initial bit will no longer have CBEST or experience. They are offering $295 per day in a desperate attempt to hire enough teachers for 21,000 students. This is a district with 80% free or reduced lunch, 60% minority, in a highly gang ridden area, students who do not need a shoddy education or to be babysat by random unqualified people.<br /><br />The district, as stated, is offering $295 per day for subs willing to cross the picket line. This is the same approxomate pay for a "real" salaried and tenured (and striking) teacher! Usually, subs earn between $90-$125. They cannot pull from the pull of district subs due to conflict of interest.<br /><br />So. I am making mortal enemies and have an interview to be an on-call, lime crossing sub. My mother, a former teacher, says this is the nail in the coffin to my teaching career. Perhaps it is, and perhaps this is why I cannot seem to keep a job long enough to be tenured. I do not give a **** about politics, political correctedness, etc when the sake of children is at hand. Sure, teachers deserve good pay, smaller class sizes are a godsend (ever taught a class of 38 at risk high schoolers? 36 fifth graders including wards of the state? That alone will make you want smaller class sizes). But it doesnt negate the fact that 21,000 children, mostly "at risk", at the bottom of the social ladder, children who witness violence and hunger daily, need a caring memtor and an education to give them the hope and tools to empower themselves for a better life and better world. When all they have to look forward to is a safe classroom and smiling teacher, how do you think they feel when they are abandoned by their only sense of normalcy, structure, support?<br /><br />That is why I am willing to cross the line. So many times, I speak up for the children and always suffer the consequences. But i refuse to die someday, knowing I gabe in to my morals and towed the line to appease someone while leaving children in the dust.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-51517613668861328732014-10-24T08:02:00.002-07:002014-10-24T09:26:42.800-07:00weekly linksI will try and do weekly links to interesting articles, with brief commentary. So here goes<br /><br />http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/1117Every school I hsbe worked in has banned personal electronics. This includes Ipods and other musical listening devices. I have secretly experimented and allowed a triwl run of students listening to their music on headphones. I do not have any empirical data, but did notice less behavioral problems, especially among students who usually refuse to do any schooleork. When "plugged in", thry could tune out and listen to music instead of disrupting others. Many students seemed to focus better on the task at hand. Thry could tune out other noises and let thr emotions and beats of the music kind of fuel them. They even begged to listen to music of their choice for exams, but that is VERY forbidden by the testing business for fear of cheating. Oh well. Here is some proof that music helps work productivity.&nbsp;<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/11179017/This-is-the-kind-of-music-you-should-listen-to-at-work.html">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/11179017/This-is-the-kind-of-music-you-should-listen-to-at-work.html</a><br /><br />So, if I ruled education, not only would students "plug in to music", but start school later in the day. I recall leaving the house for high school at 6:30am, earlier if I was to catch the bus. Kids near the attendance boundaries catch the bus at 5:55am. I recall the pain and torture of waking up before dawn. I remember getting my desk rapped with a ruler, the whoosh of air mere nanometers from my face, in an attempt to wake me in AP French IV at 7:10am. And yet schools refuse to start high school later in the day, or even offering a tiered plan; students in sports or working can attend 7-2 and then the rest can attend 9-4, or students get to choose from the two. So many studies prove how biologically, teens don't function at 7am and need their sleep; their bodies working best when going to bed late and rising late. Here is but one study.&nbsp;<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/08/25/pediatricians-late-school-start-time-good-for-teens/14338565/">http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/08/25/pediatricians-late-school-start-time-good-for-teens/14338565/</a>&nbsp;surely a late start time would benefit children and learning, so of course we do not do it. How else could we profit from academic intervention curriculum and medication to keep children happy, attentive, and alert at the crack of dawn?&nbsp;<a href="http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/sleepless-in-america/201102/do-later-school-start-times-really-help-high-school-students">more about later start times</a><br /><br />Somehow this relates to another link,&nbsp;<a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/for-more-teens-arrests-by-police-replace-school-discipline-1413858602">http://online.wsj.com/articles/for-more-teens-arrests-by-police-replace-school-discipline-1413858602</a>&nbsp;which requires logging in to view buuuuuuut, basically it is about the criminalizing of being a child. How zero tolerance policies and crazy rules make school a literal police state. And yet other schools turn a blind eye to crime, making teachers document months of interventions and feel good chats before escalating things enough to contact the parents or principal. Therefore students either end up ruling the school with misbehavior, or become too frightened to move. Ruling the school in misbehavior begets more interventions and the like, all ways to waste money and get nowhere so you can perpetuate the schools are in trouble idealogy. (Granted it is a real idealogy but no one in power wishes to fix the problem.) Or you can break down the student and use fear to coerce them into compliance.<br /><br /><br />3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-36872025118379649372014-10-24T07:47:00.003-07:002014-10-24T07:47:41.239-07:00this blog's not deadI realize I rarely post but I have not lost my vigor. I am still doing what I do snd will try and post more often.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-36934039149181273512014-06-25T18:20:00.000-07:002014-06-25T19:39:42.190-07:00Slavery Wages and Common CoreI constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Slave wages. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Ok, that's a bit sensational but not quite. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Teachers in my state make about $40,000 start pay to $75,000 right before retirement, but of course it varies. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Here I am, an experienced, credentialed teacher. I have a BA, MA, and three credentials. I don't recall the exact fact, but the majority of people being credentialed in California are already credentialed and are seeking further credentials and education for better job outlook, so I am not the anomaly. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>I keep trying to land a job and actually stay long enough for tenure, for no avail. I have massive, scary, overburdening student loans to pay back. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Enough about me and the fact many echo my story. On to my point. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>I have written previously of experienced, pink slipped teachers vying for a position as a teacher's aide, being that a thousand people can apply for a teaching job, they apply to anything and everything. Going from, say, a salary of $45,000, 6 years of college, and $80,000 in loan debt to praying to land a part-time, 15 hours a week job paying $11 an hour. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Remember, school generally only goes for about 6 hours a day, 5 days a week, for 30 weeks minus the random day off for one-day holidays and furloughs. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Maybe they apply to be a substitute teacher, often a job filled with retirees and recent BA holders thinking about going back to get a teaching credential, it is now also a career filled with RIFed teachers (the first to get a sub job). Some places in my state only pay $90 a day, no benefits, and you're lucky to work the 180 days of a school year...it is more like a few days a week at best. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>I recently applied for a few jobs, and discovered aide positions and sub jobs aren't the only wage slavery for teachers. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>One job was "on call" at $19 an hour. That meant I could, at best, work a 30 hour week and at worst...not work for a week. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Another was a full time teacher at a private school, at $11 an hour. You needed credentials and a BA and experience. To send your own child to school there cost more than you'd earn. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Other jobs look great- wow! $45,000 a year! But you must have three specific credentials or sorry, we don't want you. Or, you must be fully bilingual. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>Or, sure, you can make a nice $48,000 but must work 260 days a year for 8 hours plus some nights and weekends. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>How does this all tie into common core? I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>I didn't see such wage slavery until it began to encroach a few years ago, but it was a rarity. Since we adopted common core, such wage slavery is blossoming, mostly at charter schools and private enterprises that can suck on the blood of a "failing" public school. Often, a public school will shut down and a charter pops up in its place. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>As Common Core training, curriculum, technology costs go through the roof and funds plummet, districts and schools must compensate somehow. They HAVE to buy new Common Core textbooks, train staff, provide laptops, pay for assessments, as it is the LAW. So they have to "find" money somewhere, and salary and benefits take up to 80 or 90% of the budget. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>But good luck ever decreasing salaries and benefits without hell to pay. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>So, they raise class size to, say, 38 per class so they can RIF some teachers. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>They allow charters and private enterprise to offer what seems like better programs outside of the public arena. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>They RIF "probationary" (non-tenured, new) teachers like no ones business. These teachers end up with one year job stints every few years, and the district saves money because a person near retirement costs over $70,000 and once they retire, you can fill their position for $40,000. Before tenure and a guaranteed job and salary step and column hike, you RIF them and replace then with a new $40,000 teacher...again and again. You help perpetuate the myth that we have a "critical shortage" of teachers, because the jobs for those hire-fire teachers are posted regularly (even if 1,000 apply). You perpetuate the lie so that universities put out more college grads with teaching credentials and racked up student debt.... Sallie Mae has "her" hands all over Common Core, knowing that the push for everyone to be "college bound" and for "more teachers" will line her pockets. I constantly hear the public bemoan teacher pay- it is either too much or too little. Such a debate won't be one for a simple blog post, but I have a spin-off of interest, <br><br>I foresee a day, far too soon, when a single "teacher" oversees 100, 200 students doing computer-based learning at minimum wage. Common Core is so "foolproof" and "cognitive learning based" with prescriptive lessons and self-manageable computer programs, that you don't need to "pay" for talent. You can hire recent grads, desperate for ANY money, willing to work for minimum wage on the desperate hope for the ability to "teach the love of learning". Ha. 3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-89594111257048542222014-05-14T18:58:00.000-07:002014-05-14T18:58:28.328-07:00SOS save our schools&nbsp;My local district is suffering from major financial issues and declining enrollment -a 36% decline in 15 years. In order to save money, they are moving alternative education and pink slipping all non-teaching staff and "sharing" staff with the neighboring school a few hundred yards away. The only part left of alternative ed is a continuation school, the independent study, young parents, and adult ed/GED portions are gone. Our small community has high unemployment and is remote and lacks adequate public transportation, drug use, crime rate, poverty are on the rise. We lack things for teens to do - no malls, the park now costs money, no swimming areas or non-church related activities for teens. And so the district decides to save money by cutting programs for our most at-risk. If the do not fit in the regular model of education, they have no alternatives. No other districts or non-secretarian schools, no charters. Nothing. We claim to have rigor and individualized education and bla bla bla....so, this week I plan on addressing the board of directors to keep the school where it is. I've worked there and know the staff as well and it is a small, Close-knit school that cares. Ridding of non teaching staff, housing the students in a different campus than now, ridding of most of alternative ed as it is...is an injustice. When the district complains of lost ADA, higher percent of drop-outs, and a community with higher crime, poverty, and unemployment, I hope then the district might take notice that tossing our at risk (often our most creative thinkers) to the wolves was indeed a bad idea. Told you so.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-50410217839620022082014-05-14T13:05:00.000-07:002014-05-14T13:11:48.455-07:00grades and accountabilityI understand the reasoning behind standardized testing and standards, when the reason is "because grades are subjective". While reading Sinhue Noriega's "If It's Broken Don't Fix it", he talked about how money talks, so passing students regardless of skill is an unwritten law. Additionally, he mentioned how it often seems that all anyone cares about is the letter grade, and I do often find this true - a grade matters more than actual learning of skills or content.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />How can grades both matter and not matter when attendance takes precedence? Well, in the end attendance means money, not grades. Pushing through and passing as many kids as possible could lessen drop outs, increase enrollment and attendance, and please the public -theoretically. And parents want good grades above all else (in general), and will often seek alternative placement if their desires are not met, which means their child leaves the school and thus the school loses money.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />Therefore, passing grades please everyone no matter the cost. I have worked and blogged about a school where 21% is passing (D-) and students can re-take the tests (the only things graded) as much as they want. A child can fail at,say, 10%, retake the test at 21%, and pass. Everyone is happy...parents and students like the passing grade which keeps the students enrolled. I have also experienced other grading issues that border the immoral, illogical, and illegal. And according to Mr. Noriega, I'm not alone.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />In another school I worked in, I had two students, let's call them John and Joe. John was a mainstreamed special ed student and Joe was your regular old class clown. Both ended up with C grades at the end of the semester and both had angry mothers.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />John's mom came in for a conference and was quite irate. Her son got a C-, the first C grade of his lifetime. My school's policy was that no special ed student could get below a C- because they had a modified curriculum and had been given a fair education and thus could not fail. Fair enough. So I gave John a C-. I explained to his mom and John himself that I had never even received on bit of work from him, Not even his name on paper, and that he had never participated in class. I had modified all instruction as per his IEP and offered tutoring and re-takes of quizzes and tests, which he ignored. Therefore he got a C-. John then asked me how that could equate a C- when, "I showed up every day in class. I've always got at least a B for showing up to class." And he was dead serious. His mother was so mad she enrolled him in another school and I was in hot water. I had to provide documentation of all modifications, attempts to re-teach, communications, and work samples to save my own job since he meant a loss in funds. I had the damndest time with work samples since there were none. But in the end I kept my job.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />Then came Joe. A smart student who preferred to clown around, likely bored by school. He did the bare minimum at a mediocre level, so he earned a C. &nbsp;His mother withdrew &nbsp;him. &nbsp;Being a small, close-knit classroom, I often would call home if a student were sick and missed class and I had assumed after not seeing him for a week that something had gone wrong. This is when I learned he had been withdrawn (albeit still on our roll sheets). Suddenly, his mother was yelling at me over his grade, and yet she seemed to be agreeing with me so I was bewildered. "His grade is a &nbsp;c! He earned a C rightfully. I saw his progress reports and work samples! This is why we left the school!" Yeah...I was totally lost, so I asked her to clarify, especially because we'd built a parent-teacher rapport which is why she was quite knowledgeable about his grade. Come to find out, his transcripts showed a B in my class. She called the school to change it and they said yes, he has a B, it has been reviewed and sonar by I administration as is the policy. So...I know I gave a C but double checked just in case and yep, C<br />&nbsp;But there wasn't a thing I could do. I was powerless and yet knew the truth and we had lost a student over something I didn't do. Because grades can mean money, and I bet the B was in hopes to keep Joe in our school.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-66255654335745877062014-05-13T11:43:00.000-07:002014-05-14T07:19:19.845-07:00the rejected rebel reformers of educationHello, my name is reject. Or so it seems, according to the education system. I've been ostracised, criticized, and "pink slipped" more times than I can count. And like a sickness, I keep coming back because I believe in what's right, which is exactly what causes others to ridicule, despise, and expel me from their ranks.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />That is right, I am a teacher whose resume is a sad laundry list of failures, disappointments, and bridges burned. My resume reads like a battle plan with lots of losses. It seems everywhere I have taught didn't want me because I refused to prescribe to their damaging factory model of so called education. And yet, I wasn't this crazy martyr, screaming as I pointed out injustices and throwing the verbal punches. I sat back, my stomach in knots, as I saw children crumble before my very eyes as I mumbled out a scripted lesson. I believe that even when I tried to play the game, they could see right through me. Behind the robot-like mask of indifference, they could see the person, full of fire, grimacing at yet another dehumanizing test prep lesson. They were on to me and had to make me their enemy. Even the kids were on to me, asking why I didn't yell at them or try to scare and shame them into performing.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />These feelings recently came back to me as I read a great, highly recommended book by Sinhue Noriega, "If it's Broken Don't Fix it". I was left spellbound, nodding my head, angry at the injustices it seems so few see or know or care to admit. &nbsp;This is why they keep happening. I wanted to find Mr. Noriega and praise him beyond comprehension, for "getting it".<br />&lt;br&gt;<br /><br />&lt;br&gt;<br />I want this quote from his books, made into t-shirts, bumper stickers, plastered onto signs and billboards. I want to shout it from the hilltops because it so represents not just me and my trials and tribulations, but the system as a whole.<br /><br />"I have often found that those who take major strides towards reform quickly find adversity descending upon them. I've seen too many programs begin to make a difference, then be shut down because they caused too many waves. Teachers and administrators who chose to implement high ideals, philosophies, and practices, often find they become the target in a system that never intended to have better teaching practices put into action. These dreamers stand alone, in a world of challenge, on the sword's edge of employment because they believe in something greater than the outcome of a test."<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />A few months back, I applied to be a vice principal of a charter school in Oakland, CA. If you don't know, Oakland is in urban decay, with incredibly high crime and poverty rates, the &nbsp;Detroit of the West Coast if you will. The school toted social justice, creating life long learners and innovators for the 21st century, &nbsp;wanting To reverse the injustices of race and poverty serving as cultural and success-based barriers. I was so very excited to apply to a school that seemed to align to my philosophy of education. I spent all day writing an essay they, when I was done, left me full of energy, as if to say, "yes! I can and will make a difference! I am awesome!". I wrote about education opening minds and changing the world. I &nbsp;wrote about challenging social barriers and how we could empower the students and community to become the next generation of thinkers and doers. (I wish I could find my letter in my pile of documents as, not to toot my own horn, but it was that good.) &nbsp;I thought for sure I had the job, because my essay reflected their mission statement. I never even heard back in any way and the position has since been filled.<br /><br />Because, schools talk the talk but don't walk the walk. They want someone who blindly and robotically delivers &nbsp;corporate-developed droll lessons that keep the children in line. They want kids to attend solely for money. Everything they do is for dollar signs and hidden agendas.<br /><br /><br />&nbsp;The children...they don't even come last because that would &nbsp;assume they were of some priority. I keep trying to tow the line to have a paycheck to support my family. I keep trying to find places that have children as the priority. I keep trying to make a difference, only to continually fail and be labeled a failure in a system that doesn't want me. A system that doesn't even factor children into the equation. But I refuse to go quietly into the night.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-33186805255898916192014-04-30T18:50:00.000-07:002014-04-30T18:50:01.127-07:00accountability, college/career readiness, and Common CoreSo I recall years ago, asking some professor or district official as to why there was such a push for "accountability" and testing. Their answer was one that I saw reflected in education circles, research, and newsletters... the idea that grades are subjective and that an A one place is a C elsewhere. Therefore, how can we judge a student's abilities (ie for college entrance ) by subjective grades? How could we , the public, even "judge" a school if grades were given willy-nilly? Does my child's B really "mean" a B? Would the same work merit a B elsewhere?<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />So, "supposedly", this high-stakes accountability environment came about to "prove" what students learned and how well. This could in turn translate to the workforce and college world. A B isn't always a B but a score of 520 or Proficient is scientificslly validated, determined, measured. Its difinitive.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />So surely the ongoing test test test environment, exponentially rising under common core, adds to the accountability and validity of learning. Right? And if learning is all about college and career readiness and we must stop kindergarten dramatic plays in NY to get five year olds ready for the workforce, then these tests should help determine , well, something to do with college /career readiness. You know, like the SAT supposedly does.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />But wait. A recent study tried to correlate SAT scores with success in the first yar of college, in an attempt to develop cut scores of college readiness/success. Excdpt...the study kind of failed. There was at most a 22% correlation of SAT scores to college success. They found grades, yes those subjective fuddy duddy unreliable measures of yore, to be a better measurement for success.<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />And yet, the elitist educrats still pump out this propaganda that we need and want accountability which can only be found through standardized testing. Even if there is only a 22% correlation, since, well, we are applying quantitative reasoning to qualitative subjects. It make you wonder, what IS the purpose of all thistesting and data then, if not to effectively measure or predict a damned thing?3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-22057598315646712362014-04-07T14:06:00.000-07:002014-04-07T14:09:15.467-07:00complacency etc(First, an unrelated blurb....yes I've been out of the blog world for some time, but still fighting the fight for education. I'm attempting to get back to blogging, despite technical difficulties without an actual computer)<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />&lt;br&gt;<br />Complacency should be a sin. Why has education gotten to where it is? &nbsp;Complacency, blind trust, ignorance. For right now I will focus on blind trust; however, I feel the three terms often intertwine.&lt;br&gt;<br /><br />&lt;br&gt;<br />Parents in general have blind faith in the school system, and I can't blame them. Teachers are indeed knowledgeable professionals, often with more know-how of child development and learning theories etc than parents...I mean, that is why theyare teachers and why we trust them educating and caring for our children. The teachers though, have their hands tied and are just the lower rungs in a top down, factorh model system. Speaking up, going against the tide, gets you at worstfired and at best, one who necomes victimizded, &nbsp;dreading every day at work. I should know. But more on that in some other post But this does beg to question why so many teachers tote the line and promote bad practices and embrace them. I don't want to "diss" my fellow professionals but I musy ask, "why?" Whydo you emnrace and promote common core? Excessive standardized testing and teaching to the test? Treating children like prisoners or slaves? Do you ever atleast think, "wait a minute, this isn't right"? But I digress<br /><br /><br />Ungil I know the naswer I can only guess. Perhaps they too have blind faith. Faith that these curriculums and procedures and codes are what's best for students pecauze someone with a title behind their name ("expert") said if is "right" for the school environment. Perhaps pare ts trust teachers who trust administrators who trust think tanks, corporations, government officials that dictate what happens in theclassroom.and simce we aren't literally imbeciles,totally illiterate, unable to care for ourselves, we all blindly believe the system is working. And so it goes on.<br /><br />&nbsp;(Please ignore my many typos. On my tablet, backspacing to edit often goes beyond haywire and I can only see 75% of the line of text I type and no more)<br /><br />3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-10099359189603526212013-11-18T11:46:00.001-08:002013-11-18T11:47:00.310-08:00Speaking Words of Wisdom Let Them BeSometimes as a mother, I feel like the worst mother ever. In a world of hyper-uber-super moms, with their iphone calendar booked with soccer games, princess parties, art classes, and mommy and me events; their facebook statuses chock full of pinterest ideas like a realistic 3-d Spiderman organic gluten free homemade cake, a early learning phonics game using play-do and guaranteeing reading proficiency by age three, and daily science project-meets-craft reminders, it is no wonder I feel like crap. I'm the mom who is lucky to remember to get out Valentine's cards. I don't have a daily schedule of fifteen minute increments and activities.<br /><br />And then...I found&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wired.com/business/2013/10/free-thinkers/">this article about learning</a>&nbsp;and said, hallelujah! It made me think in terms of this blog and all that is education as well as into my own child rearing.<br /><br />Sure, my son has yet to make hand-print turkeys or baloon string art and he isn't in pee wee sports even if he is nearly age three.<br /><br />I let him play. I thought perhaps I was the worst mom ever for merely giving him tons of praise, love, snuggles, and unstructured play time. I mean, according to his IEP, he needs to know and label 7 body parts not 5. According to TV, with commercials like ABCmouse.com, he should be reading by now. Oops.<br /><br />But look at "uncivilized" societies. Go into the Kalihari bushmen tribes or Amazonian tribes and watch the kids. They don't have pee-wee football, early reading tablet apps, structured play groups, or a curriculum. They simply learn by playing, mimicing, doing, interacting.<br /><br />My son does just that. Sure, I pay attention and interact....but I more just,,,facilitate his discoveries. Sometimes he surprises me and does things completely self-taught. He can operate apps and netflix movies on an android tablet, windows computer, Wii, and Xbox console. He can draw and place his masterpiece as a desktop image. He can take photos of monochromatic themes around the home....I found on my iphone camera, monocromatic images- a yellow wall, a blue wall, a brown tile, an orange blanket, a red shirt, the black of a room with the lights turned off, the white of a lightbulb. I didn't teach him these skills. He self taught through trial and error.<br /><br /><br />3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-66658549567449329472013-11-18T11:46:00.000-08:002013-11-18T11:46:37.054-08:00Let Them Be part II<span style="font-family: inherit;">I loved this article &nbsp; &nbsp;<a href="http://www.wired.com/business/2013/10/free-thinkers/">http://www.wired.com/business/2013/10/free-thinkers/</a>&nbsp;but still wonder...can everything be self-taught? You cannot build a home without a foundation and you must know how to build a foundation first.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I just can't quite believe a child, at, say age 5 can self-educate all the way into a productive adulthood. You need basic math skills and reading skills.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">But then- wait. I taught myself to read. My mom read me books daily from birth and I first learned by memorization; "the cat in the hat" was exactly that because I memorized that exact page, but then, I could identify the words the, cat, in, hat outside of the book. I learned hat made, well, the h-a-t sound so b-a-t must be bat. In first grade, I got to sit out of the learn to read lessons and got to go to the 5th grade classroom and pick out books to read.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">But still...I think there needs to be some foundation and learning of that foundation.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Maybe have the early primary grades be a mix of tons of play (something we rid of in schools with NCLB and Common Core), expressive creativity (the arts) and unstructured exploration...with a drop here and there of structured learning. As children progress in their years in school, their own self-taught learning takes priority, where the teacher merely facilitates, observes, guides when asked.&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Think about skills you know and use, and knowledge you know and use. Think, how much was 100% taught, half taught, or self taught? Sure I learned gerunds from a teacher but grammar and sentence structure understanding came more through exposure to all the reading and writing I did. I learned from drill and kill, the names and orders of service of our presidents, but I knew little to nothing about the founding fathers until I read, on my own, founding documents and biographies.&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyway... what I glean from this article (yet I went off on a tangent) is that a lot of learning is self taught. It works best with one's frame of reference to self teach. It's an organic evolution of learning.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Common Core advocates might read this article <a href="http://www.wired.com/business/2013/10/free-thinkers/">(yep referencing it here, again)</a>&nbsp; and say, "exactly!" &nbsp;And that's how Common Core brainwashes you. The buzzwords and ideas indicate self-learning and exploration, discussion and discovery, yet they are framed around standards and assessment-bound skills. The idea of self-learning cannot exist within a defined unmovable structure. Instead, you just teach an entire class to look at 3x+ 5y= 24 and say "hey first graders, go at it!" when three children are able to self-teach and figure it out and ten are thinking about drawing a realistic replica of the 3-d perspective of the playground, ten more want to learn how to play the drum solo of that #1 song they love...</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Common Core idea of group think...err..group work and figuring and constructing knowledge still ignores individual differences, abilities, desires.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">It also assumes every child must learn skill A,B,C and D in that order and by age 10 or else. It ignores the possibility of learning E or&nbsp;<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 19.190340042114258px;">ф </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.190340042114258px;">or A,D,C.&nbsp;</span></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.190340042114258px;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.190340042114258px;">Our structured learning blames everything on poverty or teachers, when children in dire poverty can learn to run a laptop. Because they aren't expected to learn A,B,C and merely construct A,B,C because gasp they are curious- something our education seems to kill.</span></span>3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-72067735635847918792013-11-18T09:10:00.000-08:002013-11-18T09:16:11.472-08:00People are not standardized I was trying to figure out, from my post&nbsp;<a href="http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/2013/11/system-reboot-taking-back-my-own.html">Taking Back My Own</a>, why I still felt uneasy after posting it and getting all my feelings and thoughts out. Last night, it hit me as an epiphany.<br /><br />Our children are not standardized. I have said many times, you can not use quantitative methods for qualitative data. People are qualitative. Saying everyone, at, say, age 30 will have two kids, a sports car, 2,000 square foot home, and earn $ 90,000 a year as an accountant, is really the same as saying every child in 5th grade will plot a simple equation on a graph, or, in my case, every two year old will know 7 body parts.<br /><br />You can standardize machinery or a process but not peope!<br /><br />Sure, if a graduation senior in high school hasn't a clue how to punctuate a sentence or multiply 3 x 1/2, you havea problem. But to say that child must perform those skills proficiently at an exact age ignores child development theory. Sure we all reach a skill at around the same window of time, but that's just...that. There are anomalies who are still "normal" and the like.<br /><br />And standards are arbitrary.<br /><br />For child development under age 3, my child is supposed to go up stairs alternating feet or else it indicates a problem. Sure, he can gallop, skip, throw over and underhand, kick and aim a ball with his toes and side of his foot, but he doesn't alternate feet so there's a "problem".<br /><br />Sure. he cannot point and name 7 body parts (sorry folks, only 5) but he knows all his colors and can actually not just count to ten but count items up to five, as in one cheerio, two cheerio... but again he is "behind".<br /><br />He is still learning boy vs girl so yep,, you guessed it, he is behind. But this arbitrary "benchmark" ignores the fact that he can operate the wii remote, xbox remote, and my husband's tablet to operate netflix. He chooses the movie he wants and can fast forward to or replay a favorite scene. Instead of thinking inside the box and clicking the back button to return to the main screen, he fast forwards the movie to the end so it returns to the home screen. He can also open a drawing app on my nook, draw an image, and save it to the desktop, something I even struggle with.<br /><br />But you know, because some yahoo decided some weird benchmarks, my kid is "behind".<br /><br />Sure. If he can't walk, he is behind. That's a given. But since instead of pointing when someone says "show me the picture of the doggy", he pants and licks the picture and barks, that's "behind" even though not only did he point (well, with his tongue) he imitates the animal's behaviors.<br /><br />When I was a young child, I had an IQ test and tested 137. The assessor said my score was surely higher but he could only give me the 137. See, I have horrid vision (my worst eye is 20/1000!) and so my hand-eye coordination was "behind". So when doing the IQ tasks, the assessor could see my mind at work, my eyes staring at things, I'd even say what I was trying to do but my hands fumbled or my lack of depth perception meant I grabbed the wrong item. So I scored lower than I could have. I SAID what needed to be performed but since it sometimes took two grabs to grab an item, that meant I was "slow". Because the test specified "grab..." not "say..."<br /><br />Standardizing our children ignores what they CAN do and points out what they CANNOT do.<br /><br />This is a problem with NCLB and Common Core. A child might find circumferences of items for fun at age eight, but because they cannot do base-ten subtraction with blocks, they "fail". They internalize their failure, and might end up finding no joy in circumferences because it isn't valued by the school. They may learn to hate learning and feel they are stupid. Is this what we want for our children?3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-36926307925695892042013-11-05T10:07:00.001-08:002013-11-05T10:07:02.525-08:00system reboot, taking back my own<br />I naively walked towards the abyss with the greatest of intentions, and as my feet touch the edge and the earth crumbles beneath my feet, sand pouring into the pits of hell, I realize my grave mistake and slam down the reboot button. Please oh please oh please work, I cry in despair, cursing myself for my decisions. Shoulda' known better. But&nbsp; I will stop blaming myself and simply hit REBOOT and take back my child from the abyss. <br /><br />My dearest son has hearing loss from ear infections (not 'permanent" but he has never had full hearing) and thus a speech delay. I recognized it at almost age two and was the pro-active rockstar of a parent, getting him help right away, in his early most formative years. <br /><br />It took a half a year navigating red tape to get any help, but now he has an early intervention teacher, an awesome lady who I have nothing but kind words for, who shows up 2 - 3 times a month at our home to do developmental activities with my son. I can't say it is or isn't helping but he enjoys doing puzzles her so I am happy.<br /><br />Until now.<br /><br />I have to tell her soon, "it's not you, it's me and we're over" and I mean every word.<br /><br />My son is lined up for an IEP through the county and school district and can attend pre-school (at age 3!) every day, half day, for FREE. How awesome is that?&nbsp; But I have put thought and research into it and I am becoming "that parent", that does NOT get their child special ed services. After all my efforts and good intentions and desire to help my son, I am taking back my child before it is too late.<br /><br />If he goes on an IEP and thus into that pre-school, I must fill out district enrollment forms and connect that data, and his IEP, with his health records. With P - 20 and the 400 data points of Common Core and a human capital management big Brother world occupying that abyss, which is reality, I am saying f$#^ no and removing my child. <br /><br />There is no way in hell I am having his work place or college know and discriminate against him or give preferential treatment because he had an IEP. He will not be pigeon holed and sent on a specific, less-than academic pathway via social efficiency because of an IEP. Sure, you might say, you are a wacko and this could never happen. But I have done my fair share of research and all the data will exist so that all there is left to do is a click of one button and bam! Discrimination for life. I have worked with school data systems extensively, so when I say I know, I know. <br /><br />I am taking back my child and will give him the special services he may need at home, away from prying eyes.<br /><br />I thought at first, sure, I will just decline most info/data gathered and let my son attend pre-school. I wll demand upon entrance to kindergarten that his IEP NOT follow him. Problem solved right? wrong. <br /><br />Did you know the districts have their cumulative record, the paper one (now often digitalized) and ANOTHER SECRET FILE?!?!?!?!&nbsp; The speech therapist said sure, I can demand his IEP not follow him in the cum' file but the district has "other files" that follow him. She did not know the specifics but assured me they exist for each child. <br /><br />I am not even putting him in pre-school or on an IEP because of the P-20 SLDS tracking system. How my son acquired speech at age 3 is no one's flipping business but mine and his. <br /><br />I hate myself for even putting him on an IFSP. Stupid stupid me, the IFSP was my ticket and paper trail into the abyss. I hope a full system reboot and removal from the system&nbsp;will erase my trail permanently but I know there will always be a trace, somewhere. I had the best of intentions and screwed up. But can you blame me? I merely wanted to help my son, my world.<br /><br />disclaimer: I still support IEPs for many kids. Just not my own.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-21223048279851666192013-10-08T17:38:00.002-07:002013-10-09T09:53:55.771-07:00pass the barf bag<div class="tr_bq"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CvTSdfXDk3g/TXVQ4hWbPPI/AAAAAAAAAMg/cklLPIpOW20/s1600/factory-school.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CvTSdfXDk3g/TXVQ4hWbPPI/AAAAAAAAAMg/cklLPIpOW20/s1600/factory-school.jpg" /></a></div><b>External Locus of Control</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div>I made myself sick today. I found out P - 20 isn't preschool-20 (college) as I thought. Oregon, Michigan, Kansas ( and likely every state) have websites about P - 20 which state it is prenatal - college. Yes, prenatal. To quote <a href="http://www.michiganschildren.org/Speaking-Up-For-Kids/what-is-p-20.html">http://www.michiganschildren.org/Speaking-Up-For-Kids/what-is-p-20.html</a>,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"p 20 is a cradle-to-career approach to education recognizing that education does not start and end at the classroom door".&nbsp;</blockquote><br />Yes....no sugarcoating here, they overtly mentioned a government sanctioning of cradle to grave control.<br />Here I thought all along, phew I have my kiddos until pre-school or kindergarten. I have them for their most influential formative years, go me! Take that, government! My dreams were shattered today. No longer are my children my own, but part of the state,<i> parens patriae</i>, the idea of the state as parent, since, apparently, these elitist experts know best. No more mommy knows best...this world is too "complicated" for us simple folks, an idea dating back to the Utopian goals of the Progressive Era and the notion of social efficiency. <br /><br />Let me provide a disclaimer and interjection. I do not inherently see a problem with prenatal care and early childhood education. Our infant mortality rate and pregnancy complication rates are quite dismal for a first-world country. As a mother of two, I am all for prenatal care. As a teacher, I am all for early childhood education. During my first year of teaching, I found out that many kindergartners in my poverty stricken school neighborhood came to school utterly unprepared. Many had never used crayons or held a pencil. They had never even heard the ABCs and did not know their own name (often called mijo/a, baby, etc at home). I kid you not. These children are the most in need of intervention and the most targeted for such things. Therefore I wish to reiterate that I advocate prenatal care and early learning. <br /><br /><b>The Factory Model</b><br /><br />But if history means a darned thing, this scares me... targeting the most at risk populations can mean they receive a stellar education that teaches them to think, ask questions, create, innovate, argue. Or it can teach them job skills like how to ring up a burger and fries and how to operate a vacuum, you know, skills that CC offers through the 70% weight of informative text in Language Arts courses. <br /><br />The idea of scientifically managing the population to control them, as part of a Utopia, is hardly new. It originated in Prussia (see <a href="http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/search?q=prussia">http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/search?q=prussia</a> for background info on Prussia's influence on our education system) as noted at <a href="http://www.lewrockwell.com/2010/09/john-taylor-gatto/the-prussian-connection/">http://www.lewrockwell.com/2010/09/john-taylor-gatto/the-prussian-connection/</a> A concept called<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><br />"psychological parenthood" began to take shape, a radical notion without legal precedent that would be used down the road to support drastic forcible intervention into family life. It became one of the basic justifications offered during the period of mass immigration for a compulsion law intended to put children under the thrall of so-called scientific parenting in schools"</blockquote><br />This idea that the families of the nation were ill-equipped to raise children; that scientific management thereof could save us, is prominent in the past and perhaps today.<br /><br />in "Education for social efficiency: a study in the social relations of education" By Irving King (1915),<br /><br style="background-color: #afcc66;" /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"It was devised as a means of insuring that the child should learn certain things which he would not be able to learn satisfactorily if he were left to pick up things for himself by imitation and simple contact with the life that was going on daily about him. As culture increased <img src="" />in complexity, more and more of the burden of education had to be shifted to formal agencies, specifically to the school"</blockquote><br />From the same document,<br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"And this education must be largely wrought out through the school. The ideal of a social life adequate to modern conditions of living must take its place as an object of explicit and conscious training, just because it is too complex and difficult to attain in any other way"</blockquote><br />For a nice outline of the Progressive Era and the influence on society and education, visit&nbsp;<a href="http://people.uncw.edu/ricej/education/The%20Progressive%20Era%202%20Social%20Efficiency.htm">http://people.uncw.edu/ricej/education/The%20Progressive%20Era%202%20Social%20Efficiency.htm</a><br /><br />As the Progressive Era rolled in, social efficiency reared its ugly head. I don't like using wikipedia as a reliable source, but instead of quoting ten separate sources to validate wiki, I will give you the wiki definition of social efficiency- I could not have said it better.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Social efficiency educators" such as theorists Ross, Bobbitt, Gilbreth, Taylor, and Thorndike were aiming to design a curriculum that would optimize the “social utility” of each individual in a society. By using education as an efficiency tool, these theorists believed that society could be controlled. Students would be scientifically evaluated (such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IQ_tests">IQ tests</a>), and educated towards their predicted role in society. This involved the introduction of vocational and junior high schools to address the curriculum designed around specific life activities that correlate with each student’s societal future. The socially efficient curriculum would consist of minute parts or tasks that together formed a bigger concept. This educational view was somewhat derived with the efficiency of factories which could simultaneously produce able factory workers. Critics believe this model has too much emphasis on testing and separating students based on the results of that testing.</blockquote>Social efficiency keeps at it; A.H. Lauchner, a principal in 1951, said,<br /><br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">&nbsp;"not every child has to read, figure, write and spell...that many of them cannot or will not master these chores."&nbsp;</blockquote><br />Meaning, why teach true academic curriculum to certain children to whom it would be a waste?<br /><br />Okay so my point here is this, social efficiency used the "science" of test scores to drive curriculum to scientifically manage the populace, to determine which students were to be doctors and which were to be laborers. With the p-20 data tracking system, a student with behavioral issues, an IEP, low math test scores may be pigeonholed- on purpose- into becoming a manual laborer, even if their dreams and skills are in interpreting law or motivating students or what have you.<br /><br />Sire, you say, this cannot happen. Or perhaps it is an old fuddy duddy idea that never came to fruition and never will. To re-quote one of my posts from this year,<br /><br />From <a href="http://www.wiche.edu/info/publications/FrameworkForAMultistateHumanCapitalDevelopmentDataSystem.pdf">http://www.wiche.edu/info/publications/FrameworkForAMultistateHumanCapitalDevelopmentDataSystem.pdf</a><br /><blockquote>"The workforce sector wants information about prior training in<br />high school and postsecondary institutions as a foundation for<br />working with both education sectors to address identified skill gaps<br />in the workforce, as well as to identify equity gaps with respect<br />to demographic representativeness by job category. Knowing the<br />education sectors’ capacity to respond (i.e., by increasing the flow<br />of graduates with particular skill sets) will also help the state decide<br />whether to invest in education to address skill gaps or establish<br />incentives to induce more workers with needed skills to move<br />into the state. Moreover, linking with the education sectors would<br />provide labor market analysts with a wealth of data that would be<br />useful for examining equity in employment."</blockquote><br />This document is a modern document, written sometime between 2009-2013, and it states that schools can increase the flow of graduates with certain skills. How might they do this? If society needs more engineers, or fast food workers, how will it "increase the flow" without either data manipulation (suddenly Johnny's test scores plummet and his education is individualized to send him into fast food) or using tracking to label students (everyone who struggled in science gets to work in fast f<br /><br /><b>Your Secret is&nbsp;Safe With&nbsp;me</b><br /><b><br /></b>Everyone keepos saying the data collected will remain anonymous, and will solely be used to improve prenatal care, career readiness programs, etc, But of course the data will be shared with any government organization or third party vendor or person in education (textbook companies, educational consultants) which will remain anonymous once out of the school level. Students will be numbered, data will be meta data, and it will be secure. (Just like our IRS records, social security info, etc which surely has never been compromised...ha ha).<br /><br />"Anonymous" meta data is extrapolated from identifiable data, those "80% have graduated on time" had names and identities attached to them. &nbsp;Collect some meta data such as addresses, parent's names, etc and enough datamanipulating can lead back to the student. Or, if anyone decides to be evil, a school official could leak identifiable student data, or how to access it (ie that student #642t50 is Jane Plain). But don't worry,,,your data is "safe".<br /><br />Which leads back to social efficiency... whitehouse.gov had said,<br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Pearson will share data into the Learning Registry about many of their existing teaching resources including those that support CCSS so that they can be used n each students' personal learning path</blockquote><br />Yep, right back to pigeonholing students in a certain direction as part of social efficiency, or as we call it now, human capital. &nbsp;From&nbsp;<a href="http://www.csctulsa.org/content.php?p=195">http://www.csctulsa.org/content.php?p=195</a>&nbsp;we bring you,<br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The P-20 concept is a way of thinking and acting that promotes systematic aligning of multiple education, health, and social support resources to best advance human capital development from prenatal through postsecondary and employment, and on to sustained lifelong well-being...</blockquote><br />See, my long-winded post does all come together right there. And it scares me. It is wrapped up in a pretty package- who doesn't want "sustained lifelong well-being"? But the question is, who decides what well-being means? Perception is everything and one man's well being could be another man's hell. Is the government's idea of my well being what I desire? Likely not, since obviously life- and my own well being- are "human capital" and must be micromanaged and decided for me.<br /><blockquote></blockquote>3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-76866886848517263762013-10-06T17:10:00.000-07:002013-10-09T09:52:31.766-07:00think inside the boxLAUSD recently spent $1 billion -yes, billion- on technology for Common Core, mainly in the form of iPads. Let's ignore the money spent that we don't have/could be better spent. Let's ignore Common Core and the snafu that is, for now.<br /><br />After wasting/spending a billion, LA took back the iPads, sorry kids. Why? <br /><br />the kids "hacked" the tablets to enable music streaming and social media, o.m.g. folks, how awful of them. The head IT dude (or dudette, gotta be p.c.) just changed the settings to block social media and music so all the "hackers" did (hardly hackers, a grandma or kindergartner is I guess a hacker) was change the settings in the control panel. <br /><br />My first point here is, these same "evil hackers" are hiding their cell phones in their pocket, their textbook, under their desk and texting, twittering, facebooking discretely. Each child in a hoodie, or with head leaning into their arms, or hair brushed by an ear, is rocking out to their iPod. It is how this generation does things. Secondly, they are accessing these things because<br />a) they can multitask....remember back in our day, taking lecture notes while writing a note to your best friend and doodling on the margins?<br />b) your common core, scripted lesson sucks an they have lost all interest<br />c) you could do the work for them and they are so apathetic, they wouldn't turn it in...they will never do their work. Live with it.<br /><br />So I say, let them "hack". It makes no difference. <br /><br />Another point is thus....technology is so "21st century" but schools seem stuck in the 20th century and heck even 19th, 18th..... while I love "real" books, pen and paper, technology is, as we know it, the "future". So let's embrace it. But technology and "21st century skills" are NOT virtual textbooks and tests. Sorry. You could accomplish the same damned thing with pen, paper,"real" books. Schools refuse to embrace real cutting edge technology because the first mention of cell phones, social media, live streaming music or media and they shut down. Kids cannot do those things, it is against learning,they say.it isn't "right". So they continue using technology as if it were what we have already had,,,open your e-books to page 35 and take the multiple choice test at the end. Yet we spend a billion dollars to do what we already have in place. <br /><br />How about we embrace all these banned things? You can save paper by having students instagram a pic of a worksheet to share with their workgroup via text messaging. You can use the virtual blackboard to host discussions. Skype experts. Network with up and coming poets, watch video clips. Store and access data on the cloud. Follow a politician's twitter account and blog about it. Skype the leading expert in physics for a q&amp;a session. Really use technology for what it is, a newly fangled device to bring the world to your fingertips. <br /><br />And please do not punish the "hackers" as they are the last bastions of free thought and innovation we have in a lock step one size fits all automaton education system. It is the rebels that make a difference and make history. 3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-87677013642239660122013-08-14T11:13:00.000-07:002013-08-14T11:13:25.826-07:00The Answer my FriendsI often get told something like, "stop telling us what is wrong with education, tell us how to fix it!" I wish I had an answer for how to fix education.<br /><br />This blog exists as an open dialogue and informational source as to what is wrong with education- uncovering the ills of education that hide in plain sight; we are educated to not seek the answers, find out the "why", whereto look, or how to decipher something written cleverly to disguise the truth. I'd love to have a blog with the almighty answers of "how" and "what" in regards to "fixing" education.<br /><br />So why don't I propose a solution? Well, it is a complex answer...<br /><br />One, whenever I seem to encounter some new innovation, school of thought, curriculum, etc that seems to fit my dreams for education, it turns out "evil" and used for control, dumbing down, fitting some agenda that seems against freedom, enlightenment, betterment, intellectualism.<br /><br />Two, I still struggle with what education should be, as in the whole picture, the mission statement. If it is to foster intellect and curiosity, can it also prepare people for jobs without pigeonholing people into certain careers, controlling their destiny? If I use data and best practices for improvement, can it be just that without labeling and marginalizing students? Really, all I can conclude for my aims of education is to educate. To give children a thirst for knowledge, skills to think and question on their own, and innovation, curiosity, creativity. But the "how" is the mystery.<br /><br />Perhaps, when I crticize education and complain it is too prescriptive, focusing on quantitative over qualitative, one size fits all... I could use the same parameters to criticize the solution, whatever it is. I don't think there is one exact solution. More a variety of solutions, individualized, on a spectrum of sorts.<br /><br />Or...is there really no answer? Meaning, does every answer have an ":evil" side? Is there no way to educate without thought control, human capital management, eugenics, and the sort? Really, what if there is no "right" way to educate?<br /><br />I keep hoping somehow there is an answer, a pure, just, good, liberty-minded answer (or answers) out there; I just do not know how to find it. I hope by exposing that which is "evil" in education, I can uncover what is good.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-90367830783065141352013-06-12T13:34:00.000-07:002013-06-12T13:34:28.793-07:00Who Needs to Know? part IIA continnum of my post&nbsp;<a href="http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/2013/06/who-needs-to-know.html">http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/2013/06/who-needs-to-know.html</a>............<br /><br />There is rumor of"opt-out" to CCSS and the LDS data collection, and I have heard many anecdotes of parents whose information is collected without permission. A well known example would be the iris scanning incident (<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2336020/Parents-angered-schools-conduct-Minority-Report-like-iris-scans-students-young-asking-permission.html">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2336020/Parents-angered-schools-conduct-Minority-Report-like-iris-scans-students-young-asking-permission.html</a>). However, <i>supposedly</i> law is in place to prevent such things,<br /><br />"<i>The Fair Information&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Practice of Transparency calls for “providing&nbsp;</i><br /><i>notice to the individual regarding the collection,&nbsp;</i><br /><i>use, dissemination, and maintenance of personally&nbsp;</i><br /><i>identifiable information” (NIST 2010 Special&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Publication 800-122, p. D-2, 3)</i>."<br /><br />This links to FERPA which was changed in 2011 (after publication of this document) which is referenced here&nbsp;<a href="http://dianeravitch.net/2013/04/08/why-is-the-us-department-of-education-weakening-ferpa/">http://dianeravitch.net/2013/04/08/why-is-the-us-department-of-education-weakening-ferpa/</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/pdf/sealea_overview.pdf">http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/pdf/sealea_overview.pdf</a>&nbsp;to cite a few sources.<br /><br />But don't fear, folks....<br /><br />"<i>A school or district is also required to provide an&nbsp;</i><br /><i>annual Directory notice, if directory information&nbsp;</i><br /><i>is disclosed without consent. The school or district&nbsp;</i><br /><i>may choose to combine their annual FERPA&nbsp;</i><br /><i>notification with their annual Directory notice.&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Directory information includes information&nbsp;</i><br /><i>contained in a student’s education record that&nbsp;</i><br /><i>would not generally be considered harmful or an&nbsp;</i><br /><i>invasion of privacy if disclosed. The Directory&nbsp;</i><br /><i>notice must describe the specific types of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>information the school or district has designated&nbsp;</i><br /><i>as directory information, and the parent’s right to&nbsp;</i><br /><i>opt out of disclosure of directory information. In&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the case of postsecondary institutions, these rights&nbsp;</i><br /><i>accrue to the student</i>."<br /><br />Of course, I have worked in schools and perhaps I'm out of the loop and was out of the loop as data and assessment coordinator but I've never seen this directory or heard mention of it. I hope exists but my guess is it is published in the district office and sits in a binder; no one is ever notified of it, the fact that it is law is apparently enough notification.<br /><br />Collecting data is, again, supposedly a very public motion with an opt-out program but it isn't quite that cut and dry. All the info you submit when enrolling a child (ie a photo id of parents, utility bills, birth certificate) are all "mandatory" for enrollment and often end up in the data systems. I mean, I guess that is common sense but parents often do not think of it as such, and they are not alerted to the collection and use of the data past enrollment purposes.<br /><br /><i>"The Pupil Protection Rights Act requires parental&nbsp;</i><br /><i>notification if a study to be conducted in a school&nbsp;</i><br /><i>includes any information or questions about the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>student or the student’s family related to the eight&nbsp;</i><br /><i>identified sensitive topics: political affiliations or&nbsp;</i><br /><i>beliefs; religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs;&nbsp;</i><br /><i>mental and psychological problems; sex behavior&nbsp;</i><br /><i>or attitudes; illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating If the study is funded by the U.S. Department of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Education, schools and contractors must obtain&nbsp;</i><br /><i>written parental consent before minor students&nbsp;</i><br /><i>can be required to participate in the study. If the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>school received funds from the U.S. Department of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Education, school districts are required to provide&nbsp;</i><br /><i>an annual schedule of the specific or approximate&nbsp;</i><br /><i>dates of all other surveys with a notification of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the parents’ right to request and review a copy of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the survey before it is administered and to decide&nbsp;</i><br /><i>that their child will not participate, reagrdless&nbsp;</i><br /><i>of the survey’s source of funding. Under this&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Act, parents must also be notified each year of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>their right to decide whether or not their child&nbsp;</i><br /><i>will participate in activities that make student’s&nbsp;</i><br /><i>personal information available for marketing or&nbsp;</i><br /><i>other profit-making activities</i>."<br /><br />Again, I have yet to see these "notifications" and keep hearing from parents of breech of this law/procedure.<br /><br />Things often get lost in "legalese" and below you can see that permission to use a student's data is permissible &nbsp; without notification when sharing with school officials and other designated entities with legitimate educational interests. What might that mean? I have yet to get an answer and <i>suspect</i> it could mean volunteers, government organizations (i.e. dept of health), testing companies, think tanks, researchers, textbook companies, and corporations.<br /><br />"<i>The annual FERPA notice provides information&nbsp;</i><br /><i>about permissible uses of PII in education records.&nbsp;</i><br /><i>That is, FERPA allows educational agencies&nbsp;</i><br /><i>and institutions to non-consensually release&nbsp;</i><br /><i>education records to school officials and other&nbsp;</i><br /><i>designated entities with legitimate educational&nbsp;</i><br /><i>interests 20 U.S.C. § 1232g(b(1)(A</i>)"<br /><br />To confirm or ease my fears, here is some more "legalese",<br /><br /><i>"a&nbsp;</i><br /><i>third-party contractor, consultant,&nbsp;</i><br /><i>volunteer, or other party to whom an&nbsp;</i><br /><i>agency or institution has outsourced&nbsp;</i><br /><i>institutional services for which the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>agency or institution would otherwise&nbsp;</i><br /><i>use employees—as long as that third&nbsp;</i><br /><i>party’s use and maintenance of education&nbsp;</i><br /><i>records is under the direct control of the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>agency or institution and is subject to&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the regulation requirements governing&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the use and redisclosure of PII from&nbsp;</i><br /><i>education records......</i><br /><i>.....The disclosure is to organizations conducting&nbsp;</i><br /><i>studies for, or on behalf of, educational&nbsp;</i><br /><i>agencies or institutions for specified&nbsp;</i><br /><i>purposes related to predictive tests, student&nbsp;</i><br /><i>aid programs, or the improvement of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>instruction......<br />.............The disclosure is in connection with a health&nbsp;</i><br /><i>or safety emergency ..............</i>"<br /><br />So yes corporations, government officials, volunteers etc can see the data. And what defines a health or safety emergency? A natural disaster, yes....but could there be a "psychological risk screening", "immunization study" or other "emergency" where data is collected? Again, the answer is unclear.<br /><br />Can you view your child's records to ensure compliance?t &nbsp;Yes....kind of. You probably will not know who else views their data but you can know what they view.... kind of. I have heard fro parents that is isn't just a walk in and see them scenario, that schools stall and send you from one person to another; some schools reportedly have even tried to charge a fee for the records. Regardless, here is the law.<br /><br />"<i>FERPA (20 U.S.C. § 1232g (a) and the related&nbsp;</i><br /><i>regulations (34 CFR § 99) establish the right of&nbsp;</i><br /><i>a parent to inspect and review his or her child’s&nbsp;</i><br /><i>(or in the case of an eligible student his or her&nbsp;</i><br /><i>own) education record for accuracy</i>."<br /><br /><br />I hope these two posts, links, excerpts, and commentary have helped parents and educators at least know what is happening with data (even if some of this information is three years old, thus outdated).3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-87847162156699555342013-06-11T17:20:00.001-07:002013-06-11T17:20:38.871-07:00Who Needs to Know?As one may surmise, one of my biggest apprehensions regarding CCSS (Common Core Standards) is the LDS (Longitudinal Data Sysyem) collections proposed.<br /><br />I found a document&nbsp;<a href="http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2011/2011602.pdf">http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2011/2011602.pdf</a>&nbsp;that had some interesting information that I will copy and paste here. Enjoy!<br /><br /><i>The Fair Information Practice of Data&nbsp;</i><br /><i>Minimization and Retention calls for “only&nbsp;</i><br /><i>collecting personally identifiable information that&nbsp;</i><br /><i>is directly relevant and necessary to accomplish&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the specified purpose(s). [And for] only retaining&nbsp;</i><br /><i>personally identifiable information for as long as&nbsp;</i><br /><i>is necessary to fulfill the specified purpose(s).”</i><br /><br />This sounds innocent but who decides what is relevant and necessary, and for how long? With P-20 in position, the information could be viable and important for more than 20 years of a person's life. The types of data could include psychological profiles, behavioral records, health records and religious affiliation, to name a few.&nbsp;<a href="http://truthinamericaneducation.com/privacy-issues-state-longitudinal-data-systems/privacy-invasiondata-mining/what-400-data-points/">http://truthinamericaneducation.com/privacy-issues-state-longitudinal-data-systems/privacy-invasiondata-mining/what-400-data-points/</a>&nbsp;links to&nbsp;<a href="https://ceds.ed.gov/elements.aspx?v=3&amp;ex=">https://ceds.ed.gov/elements.aspx?v=3&amp;ex=</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://nces.ed.gov/forum/datamodel/eiebrowser/techview.aspx?instance=studentPostsecondary">http://nces.ed.gov/forum/datamodel/eiebrowser/techview.aspx?instance=studentPostsecondary</a>&nbsp; which outline these proposed records to be collected on students. Each to their own, but who wants this information collected on their children, especially when the length of time and who views the data remains vague?<br /><br />Perhaps I am paranoid but thus next excerpt shows my worst fears;<br /><br /><i>"Linkage with information from an external&nbsp;</i><br /><i>source could occur as a result of a direct linkage&nbsp;</i><br /><i>by someone with access to two confidential&nbsp;</i><br /><i>data systems who is able to directly link the two&nbsp;</i><br /><i>databases (e.g., the student record linked to local&nbsp;</i><br /><i>public health records on sexually transmitted&nbsp;</i><br /><i>diseases or local crime records) or as a result of a&nbsp;</i><br /><i>less direct linkage of information from a student’s&nbsp;</i><br /><i>education record with information available in&nbsp;</i><br /><i>public records (e.g., the education record for a&nbsp;</i><br /><i>15-year-old Asian female includes participation&nbsp;</i><br /><i>in services for unmarried pregnant students, and&nbsp;</i><br /><i>public birth records could be used to identify&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the father of the student’s child. Alternatively, an&nbsp;</i><br /><i>education record might show that a 13-year-old&nbsp;</i><br /><i>female student was the victim of a violent assault&nbsp;</i><br /><i>during the school day on a specific date (without&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the specifics of the assault). Meanwhile, a report&nbsp;</i><br /><i>in a local newspaper, while protecting the direct&nbsp;</i><br /><i>identifiers of the victim, reveals some of the details&nbsp;</i><br /><i>of an assault on a female student in that school on&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the same date).</i>"<br /><br />The collection of data has purpose which to me seems to conflict, Case in point;<br /><br />"<i>INSTRUCTION—Teacher and counselors&nbsp;</i><br /><i>need information about an individual&nbsp;</i><br /><i>student’s previous educational experiences&nbsp;</i><br /><i>and any special needs the student might have&nbsp;</i><br /><i>to deliver appropriate instruction and services&nbsp;</i><br /><i>and to plan educational programs; parent&nbsp;</i><br /><i>contact information is needed to keep parents&nbsp;</i><br /><i>informed of student progress.&nbsp;</i><br /><i>» OPERATIONS—Schools and districts need&nbsp;</i><br /><i>data for individual students to ensure the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>efficiency of day-to-day functions such as&nbsp;</i><br /><i>attendance records, meeting individual&nbsp;</i><br /><i>students’ special needs, handling individual&nbsp;</i><br /><i>students’ health problems, and operating food&nbsp;</i><br /><i>service and transportation programs.</i><br /><i>» MANAGEMENT—Schools, districts, and&nbsp;</i><br /><i>state education agencies use data about&nbsp;</i><br /><i>students for planning and scheduling&nbsp;</i><br /><i>educational programs and for the distribution&nbsp;</i><br /><i>of resources. ACCOUNTABILITY—Schools, districts,&nbsp;</i><br /><i>and state education agencies use data&nbsp;</i><br /><i>about students and about individual&nbsp;</i><br /><i>students’ progress to provide information&nbsp;</i><br /><i>about students’ accomplishments and&nbsp;</i><br /><i>the effectiveness of schools and specific&nbsp;</i><br /><i>educational programs.&nbsp;</i><br /><i>» RESEARCH AND EVALUATION—Schools,&nbsp;</i><br /><i>local, state, and federal education agencies&nbsp;</i><br /><i>use data about students and about individual&nbsp;</i><br /><i>students’ progress to conduct analysis&nbsp;</i><br /><i>of program effectiveness, the success&nbsp;</i><br /><i>of student subgroups, and changes in&nbsp;</i><br /><i>achievement over time to identify effective&nbsp;</i><br /><i>instructional strategies and to promote school&nbsp;</i><br /><i>improvement.</i> "<br /><br />I understand the purposes outlined here and agree with them, having had managed two schools' data a few years ago. But what does the information about an assault on campus that was reported in the news? &nbsp;How would maternal last name, religious affiliation, and website URL be used in the classroom, or at the state and federal level to improve instruction?<br /><br />&nbsp;Again, I remind you of P20, that these records will follow you through life:<br /><br />"<i>To facilitate the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>usefulness of this information, the legislation&nbsp;</i><br /><i>also calls for an alignment between P–12 and&nbsp;</i><br /><i>postsecondary data systems, which requires&nbsp;</i><br /><i>linkages between student and teacher records,&nbsp;</i><br /><i>between preschool and elementary education, and&nbsp;</i><br /><i>between secondary and postsecondary education&nbsp;</i><br /><i>and the workforce.</i>"<br /><br />It seems who will access student information remains unspecified, and the most private data such as biometrics and social security numbers are of course of highest concern. This document states that such records wqill only be accessed by and for a need to know basis but there lacks a definition of "need to know".<br /><br />"<i>After the risk level is established, consideration&nbsp;</i><br /><i>should be given to providing more protection&nbsp;</i><br /><i>and more restrictions on access for the data&nbsp;</i><br /><i>elements that are identified as highly sensitive.&nbsp;</i><br /><i>For example, these data elements might be stored&nbsp;</i><br /><i>apart from the rest of the student record in a&nbsp;</i><br /><i>more secure electronic environment, with access&nbsp;</i><br /><i>limited to “need to know” circumstances for only&nbsp;</i><br /><i>a subset of those with access to the system</i>."<br /><br />One possible relief is the proposal to give students unique identifier numbers (California already has such a thing) separate from their Social Security number; the article adds a second layer of security that at least did not exist in California during the 2010-2011 school year; a unique linking code to access social security numbers which few have access to, so that Social Security numbers will be more secure.<br /><br />Who might be managing your child's data or accessing the linking codes? Well,<br /><br />"PII carries a potential for misuse. As a result, it is<br />advisable to require security screenings for staff<br />members whose job responsibilities require them<br />to have access to PII in student education records.<br />The screening might include a background<br />investigation using written, electronic, telephone,<br />or personal contact to determine the suitability,<br />eligibility, and qualifications of a staff member for<br />employment."<br /><br />This sounds great, yet humans are, well, human. Every year across the nation, teachers with supposed clean records and qualifications attend yearly training of confidentiality and test procedures, signing legally binding affidavits and yet every year there are teachers and administrators across the nation breaching confidentiality of these tests. Therefore, how can a similar procedure protect your child's data with 100% assuredness?<br /><br />Stay tuned for part II of my analysis of this document.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-76960980052147350622013-06-06T20:24:00.000-07:002013-06-06T20:24:26.388-07:00The gray areaA quick little rant...<br /><br />It seems that those I align myself with politically and educationally tend to go one way and those opposite, well, opposite. Of course I'm generalizing here, never a good tactic for debate or even backing up a claim but I digress....<br /><br />What I'm trying to say is, it seems each "side" argues (yep here comes the generalizations) for one very polarized opinion.<br /><br />Side A says: Eek education is all about indoctrination into social justice and communism (or socialism), environmentalism, removal of patriotism or anything to do with the constitution or Founding Fathers, replacing it with a one world order, pro-UN global society that hates Christianity.<br /><br />Or something like that.<br /><br />Side B says everything opposite (no need to list it, you are a smart reader and can figure it out)<br /><br />And then there is little old me, usually siding with A and ranting about the wrongs of side B, but yet I say<br /><br />Wait! There is a gray area!<br /><br />America is a great nation, one many people only dream of, but yes we as a nation are not perfect. No one person or place is. We have faults. But we have things worthy of praise. Our values, our founding documents, our collective individualism and desire to help others and better ourselves and nation is something extraordinary. Few realize this, but talk to anyone from say, Cuba, Romania, Cambodia who came to our shores for what we offer and you will hear some great stories. So we can't just side with A and say we are the best most perfectly, &nbsp;awesome country, &nbsp;America f*** yeah, but we also can't say America is all that is evil and wrong with the world.<br /><br />We cannot decimate the planet from an environmental perspective, but we should really bring in logic to the equation. No matter how many reusable bags I use, China will still be responsible for 30% of the smog in my &nbsp;skies. Worshipping sustainability in the sense we become a third world stone age world is not the answer, but why not try and clean up the littered highways?<br /><br />We are a predominately Christian nation, but there are other religions out there and we are not a Christian nation per se. Christians should pray for God to guide and protect our nation, but if a Muslim girl wants to wear a hijab or a school wants to teach that Hinduism is a religion of India and looks to books such as the Bhagavad Gita for guidance, so be it. We as Americans are not all one kind of people and that makes us great.<br /><br />Face it. We are a global society. While we should have patriotism and love of our nation, we need to realize there is a world out there that interacts with us daily. We should be familiar with other cultures, religions, customs, languages. Chances are, you will have a neighbor from Italy and another from South Africa, a co-worker from Singapore, a boss from Brazil... you get the idea. We can love our country and know about other peoples.<br /><br />We need to recongize these gray areas and focus in on them instead of polarizing everything. Only then can we get somewhere.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-7064497684204066382013-06-02T07:35:00.001-07:002013-10-09T09:53:28.349-07:00P20, LDS, CCSS Data WILL control your child's futureP20 <i>will</i> mold your child into a specific career, not of your child's choosing but of the State's, Government's, or workforce/corporation's desire and need. With the collection of over 400 data points with LDS (Longitudinal Data Systems) being developed under CCSS, comes the sharing of that data with governmental agencies, colleges, and workplaces.<br /><br />So what, you might say. Well thorough the scientific management of people, known as "human capital", little Billy and Susie will no longer be Billy or Susie but numbers in a system, funneled into specific tasks in society based on assessment results, behavioral data, or merely just a need for more widget makers. Just like in the social efficiency movement, our children are seen as future workers, machines of labor, no longer unique individuals with dreams and desires but robots called human capital, scientifically designed to serve the corporate machine.<br /><br />From&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wiche.edu/info/publications/FrameworkForAMultistateHumanCapitalDevelopmentDataSystem.pdf">http://www.wiche.edu/info/publications/FrameworkForAMultistateHumanCapitalDevelopmentDataSystem.pdf</a>&nbsp;, a well renowned document full of information worth reading, comes this:<br /><br /><i>"The workforce sector wants information about prior training in&nbsp;</i><br /><i>high school and postsecondary institutions as a foundation for&nbsp;</i><br /><i>working with both education sectors to address identified skill gaps&nbsp;</i><br /><i>in the workforce, as well as to identify equity gaps with respect&nbsp;</i><br /><i>to demographic representativeness by job category. Knowing the&nbsp;</i><br /><i>education sectors’ capacity to respond <span style="background-color: yellow;">(i.e., by increasing the flow&nbsp;</span></i><br /><i><span style="background-color: yellow;">of graduates with particular skill sets)</span> will also help the state decide&nbsp;</i><br /><i>whether to invest in education to address skill gaps or establish&nbsp;</i><br /><i>incentives to induce more workers with needed skills to move&nbsp;</i><br /><i>into the state. Moreover, linking with the education sectors would&nbsp;</i><br /><i>provide labor market analysts with a wealth of data that would be&nbsp;</i><br /><i>useful for examining equity in employment."</i><br /><br />Did you read that? By increasing the flow of graduates with a particular skill set? Think....how can they do this? Let's scale this idea down quite a lot, to ten students, numbered 1-10.<br />1-3 want to be doctors,<br />4, a firefighter,<br />5-7, teachers,<br />8-10 truck drivers.<br />However, the workforce sector has an overabundance of teachers and truck drivers but needs more soldiers and HR managers. So, by collecting data and seeing which child might possess a personality for the military, or by, God forbid, changing a child's educartional path completely, suddenly you have...<br />1-2 doctors.<br />3 became a soldier<br />4, firefighter<br />5, teacher<br />6 became an HR manager<br />7, solider<br />8, truck driver<br />9, solider<br />10, HR manager<br /><br />Suddenly, business, through data has manipulated the future, manipulated our children through education to shape a desired future, by increasing the flow of graduates with a specific set of skills.<br /><br /><br />Is this what we want for our children?3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-81222829213231270112013-06-01T20:36:00.002-07:002013-06-01T20:36:58.313-07:00Common Core Deja Vu <br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The Common Core Standards <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>(CCSS) movement, which prepares students to be work or college ready, is a facet of the P20 pipeline- the process of managing education and outcomes of children from preschool through college, the workforce, and perhaps beyond. This idea, however, is hardly new. Just think of it as Human Capital Management 2.0. Yep. Human capital is a buzzword of the CCSS and especially P20 pipeline, and it is synonymous with social efficiency. Now, in the 21<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">st</span></sup> century, we have metadata to track, plot, assess, and manage every person’s every action if we wish…something we lacked with the Human Capital Management 1.0 version, but have now with longitudinal data systems in place.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I want to give a brief overview of Human Capital Management 1.0 , aka Social Efficiency, an essential tenet of the Progressive Era, circa approximately 1890-1930. You can read up on Social Efficiency here </span><a href="http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/search?q=social+efficiency"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://3rseduc.blogspot.com/search?q=social+efficiency</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">but basically it is the scientific management of society to make a more efficient, almost utopian society with everyone in their place, everything running like a well-oiled machine. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>Author Joel Spring said it well; <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span><i><span style="color: #222222; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">social efficiency educators was made up of an acceptance of a collective society and a belief that an individual should be devoted to a specialized task</span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"> <i>in society. </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">An educational pioneer, Elwood Cubberley, stated in his 1905 disseration, “</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i><span style="color: #222222;">schools were to be factories] "in which raw products, children, are to be shaped and formed into finished products... manufactured like nails, and the specifications for manufacturing will come from government and industry” </span></i>This meant, for education, the advent of IQ testing, SATs, and the backdrop for the standardized testing movement. Add in a splash of eugenics, and the dream was to assess students, track them, and find their perfect role in society. This often meant, at the time, that the more inferior peoples such as blacks or women, were pigeonholed into an education that denied them of classical education; no more algebra, philosophy, Latin, Greek mythology….and instead an education to train them for the workforce such as manual labor or homemaking. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">An educational pioneer, Elwood Cubberley, stated in his 1905 dissertation, “</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i><span style="color: #222222;">schools were to be factories] "in which raw products, children, are to be shaped and formed into finished products... manufactured like nails, and the specifications for manufacturing will come from government and industry” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></i>Does this sound a little familiar, or at least echo our fears of CCSS? It should. <o:p></o:p></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I could go on and on about this but will instead just leave you with a few websites and quotes to engage your mind; you can connect the dots if you will.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“The standards establish clear and consistent goals for learning that will prepare America’s children for success in college and work”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span></i>and &nbsp;<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"With common standards and assessments, students, parents, and teachers will have a clear, consistent understanding of the skills necessary for students to succeed after high school and compete with peers across the state line and across the ocean." </i></span><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/articles/8-national-governors-association-and-state-education-chiefs-launch-common-state-academic-standards"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.corestandards.org/articles/8-national-governors-association-and-state-education-chiefs-launch-common-state-academic-standards</span></a><o:p></o:p></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></div><br /><div style="line-height: 15.75pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 10.5pt;">“P-20 initiatives connect educational systems for increased student performance, greater efficiency, improved outcomes, and smoother pathways throughout a student's career. These factors are of critical importance in a competitive global economy.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div><br /><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; line-height: 15.75pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; vertical-align: baseline; word-spacing: 0px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 10.5pt;">The Missouri Department of Higher Education (MDHE) is working on several fronts to help ensure that connections between early childhood, elementary and secondary education, and higher education can create a more seamless pipeline for Missouri students.</span></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: black; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 10.5pt;">&nbsp;“….and<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">….”</i></span></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 10.5pt;">MDHE is committed to improving linkages between K-12 and higher education data systems to facilitate data-driven decision-making. As the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is transitioning to their unique-identifier, unit-record student and teacher data system (MOSIS), both departments are working to insure that MDHE's EMSAS data and DESE's MOSIS data will facilitate appropriate and meaningful longitudinal data analysis on student performance and teacher excellence.</span>” …and….” MDHE's commitment to streamlining educational systems across the P-20 spectrum extends to the formative education and critical transitions in early childhood education.<span class="apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span>“ <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></i><a href="http://www.dhe.mo.gov/p20/"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.dhe.mo.gov/p20/</span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>(each state reflects a similar mission)<o:p></o:p></div><br /><div style="line-height: 15.75pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></div><br /><div style="line-height: 15.75pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is a consortium of 22 states plus the U.S. Virgin Islands working together to develop a common set of K-12 assessments in English and math anchored in what it takes to be ready for college and careers. These new K-12 assessments will build a pathway to college and career readiness by the end of high school, mark students’ progress toward this goal from 3rd grade up, and provide teachers with timely information to inform instruction and provide student support. The PARCC assessments will be ready for states to administer during the 2014-15 school year.” </i><a href="http://www.parcconline.org/about-parcc"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.parcconline.org/about-parcc</span></a><o:p></o:p></div><br /><div style="line-height: 15.75pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span class="textbold"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">“Online Assessment Roadmap 2014</span></i></b></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: &quot;Verdana&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">&nbsp;</span></i></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; float: none; word-spacing: 0px;">to learn how using more innovative question types, online delivery, automated and artificial-intelligence powered scoring engines, and immediate web-based reporting of results can transform learning. This concrete planning and implementation resource will help states and districts navigate and mitigate the challenges of transitioning to online assessments</span></span></i><span style="background: white;">.</span> “</span><a href="http://commoncore.pearsoned.com/index.cfm?locator=PS11Uz"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://commoncore.pearsoned.com/index.cfm?locator=PS11Uz</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">and,<span style="background: white;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Evidence-based standard setting&nbsp;resources to understand and plan for how to shift use of cut scores to track progress toward college and career readiness.”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>(Which links to a fascinating article full of “gold” via the pearson ed site )</span><a href="http://www.pearsonassessments.com/hai/images/tmrs/Bulletin21_Evidence_Based_Standard_Setting.pdf"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.pearsonassessments.com/hai/images/tmrs/Bulletin21_Evidence_Based_Standard_Setting.pdf</span></a><o:p></o:p></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“This project, “Ho‘okele,” will develop a P20 statewide longitudinal data system (P20 LDS) to track <o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">individuals’ participation, progress and performance from early childhood education to the workforce.1<o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The project will enable use of the longitudinal, inter-agency data to improve educational and workforce <o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">development outcomes, achieving Hawai‘i’s goal for human capital development”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>…</i> and…”<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The P20 LDS application proposes six major outcomes representing a range of investments—human<o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">capital, financial, technological, and institutional—to develop a robust P20 LDS that supports improved <o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">student outcomes and educational attainment. The outcomes include a multi-state data exchange among <o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">western states encompassing K-12, postsecondary and workforce longitudinal data from Hawai‘i, Idaho and Oregon; the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) will coordinate the “Multi-State<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Human Capital Development Data System.”” </i><a href="http://archive.jan2013.hawaii.gov/labor/wdc/P20LDS_HIApp_1209_execsum.pdf"><span style="color: blue;">http://archive.jan2013.hawaii.gov/labor/wdc/P20LDS_HIApp_1209_execsum.pdf</span></a><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I strongly encourage you to visit each referenced site and explore all that is there; the drive for change and control of our children is very overt and evident if you just do a little digging. <span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></div>3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-80355269761790323702013-04-27T18:02:00.000-07:002013-04-27T18:02:37.592-07:00Why Education Standards SuckI was trying to think, why am I so against NCLB and CCSS (Common Core Standards)? Okay, sure, we all know I loathe the testing and data tracking and who doesn't? But I mean...we need standards. We don't want a high school senior who was never taught how to multiply, and shouldn't every child know about the Founding Fathers and Constitution?<br /><br />&nbsp;I agree with these thoughts, but when everyone gets their hands into "a child should know...." we either get 10,000 standards a year- breadth not depth and learning suffers, or someone wins the "should know" battle, whoever has the biggest mouth and most money, and again, the children lose.<br /><br />So I don't quite have the answer except that yeah, I don't like standards. Besides, who says a 5th grader must know A,B, and C? I even encounter this with my toddler son who was recently assessed for a speech delay. He could stack blocks 12 high, something I'd never taught, but couldn't categorize by color so suddenly his cognitive score dropped. Even though certain things he can do are at a 3-4 year level, since they weren't assessed....&nbsp; you get the point.<br /><br />Also, any good teacher- public, private, home school, has some idea of what to teach because we were all schooled&nbsp; at one point, and we have a passion for education or else we wouldn't be teaching. Besides, even with all these "should knows", we graduate students who can't divide or find the USA on a map.<br /><br />When I look at education today, I am appaled. I look at my previous classrooms with scripted curriculum, or my current class with "paragraph frames" and "step up to writing" and an all over lack of novels to be read and I think...whoa. In high school, I was so bored and done with the system I nearly dropped out, and if I were in school today...I don't even want to imagine. I'd be educationally suicidal. <br /><br />I don't remember the dull textbook stories or comprehension questions, the dry whitewashed "social studies" passages or timed math tests. I forget my standardized tests. What do I remember? Non-standardized education.<br /><br />I remember in first grade, since I was years ahead of my peers and GATE (gifted ed) didn't exist for first grade, I kind of got my own mini-Montessori. When possible, my teacher gave me third grade math packets and let me go to the grades 3-6 library and read and write to my hearts content while the rest of the class learned their ABCs. <br /><br />My third grade teacher taught us "nature study", surely a "liberal environmental" idea, but I loved nature and fondly remember our weekly nature hikes and how we adopted a tree. I remember drawing the intricate knots on my little oak tree and watching her leaves turn golden brown in fall.<br /><br />I remember 4th grade when I was home schooled, and read the entire Audobon Encyclopedia FOR FUN, and made my own edible plants books.<br /><br />I recall in 6th grade we did a unit on ancient civilizations. I'm sure we read some droll passage in the textbook about Mesopotamia or something...I dunno...but we spent an entire MONTH creating our own civilization. WE made clay rolling things with symbols carved in, to make stamped images mimicking the rosetta stone. We created the government, language, foods, art, maps of an imaginary civilization. We then made a few artifacts and then smashed and buried them, and went to excavate another student's cultural ruins. <br /><br />I recall we were to read a 200 page novel of our choice and I chose&nbsp; Clan of the Cave Bear. This was my first introduction to the restrictive education system and mold, as I had to get board approval (after much persuading by my mom, a teacher in their district) to read a book on my own that mentioned s-e-x. No commandment for reading the entire zillion-paged series of adult level reading books. <br /><br />In 8th grade we had a feast in class of colonial foods, and even got to dress up. We were reading some novel (gasp we read novels!) of colonial times where a boy's fingers were melded together in a blacksmith accident, so we got to try buttoning shirts and eating food with our fingers taped together. We then read some other novel and had a choice of end projects; one was to create and cook an entire southern meal. I did such, and typed up a menu and donned a faux twangy accent and served my parents a 5 course meal. <br /><br />I recall hating high school as I'd said, but art and drama saved me. I could forge my own path and do as I pleased, as art lacks much structure. I sometimes even ditched class to go to art or drama, and spent many lunches and after school hours in the theater or art class. The smell of paint or the flash of theater lights still feels like home to me.<br /><br />I look at curriculum, standards, the way education is going, and I die inside. I really do. Children will no longer bury their own civilizations or read hundreds-of-pages novels, because this kind of self-centered, innovative curiosity is being extinguished for good.3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-79833629873312320442013-04-24T20:14:00.002-07:002013-04-24T20:14:34.231-07:00Students and the Govt:: Security, Safety, PrivacyStudents were discussing the Boston Marathon bombing in Social Studies/US History today, so to do some cross-curricular learning, I had their daily journal prompt relate.<br /><br />My prompt was;<br /><br /><em>Recently in Boston. homes were </em><br /><em>searched for terror suspects. Some </em><br /><em>say this is necessary protection. </em><br /><em>Others say it violates freedom and privacy. </em><br /><em>What are your thoughts?</em><br /><br />And here is a sampling of results. I am not going to politicize it or give commentary... take it as you like. I found the answers interesting.<br /><br />Spelling etc is not taken into account for this activity.<br /><br />Also I apologize for the sideways images, they are the correct orientation on my laptop, camera, and Microsoft paint. I provide captions for readability.<br /><br />Lastly, I did not impose my own beliefs...merely gave the prompt, collected work, and said there would be follow up activities in Social Studies. So their answers were not fed to them.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YNikxbv4t0E/UXiX9TBtudI/AAAAAAAABdc/Iax3uGUi5eY/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YNikxbv4t0E/UXiX9TBtudI/AAAAAAAABdc/Iax3uGUi5eY/s320/1.JPG" width="122" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I think it was a good idea. It could help prevent </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">any other dangerous situations. At the time it was</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">also an invasion of privacy because they barged in the </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">without a search warrant</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uO7mxK6Gv8o/UXiX9KHGztI/AAAAAAAABdU/KzCCXjm2jBQ/s1600/2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uO7mxK6Gv8o/UXiX9KHGztI/AAAAAAAABdU/KzCCXjm2jBQ/s320/2.JPG" width="138" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">My thoughts are that they</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">should secure Boston</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">because people there are</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">making threats and bombs yes</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">its okay for police to search</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">your house for bombs ore</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">any type of weapons</span><br />&nbsp;</td></tr></tbody></table><br />﻿<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0jqTo7GJmS4/UXiX9Cyx4NI/AAAAAAAABdY/CZrFf2NHlOg/s1600/3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0jqTo7GJmS4/UXiX9Cyx4NI/AAAAAAAABdY/CZrFf2NHlOg/s320/3.JPG" width="118" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I wouldn't mind getting my</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">house searched because of</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">the situation\ that happen. A</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">lot of things have been</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">happening so I feel that it</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">will be necessary to search</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">other peoples homes</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />﻿<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7X5Zvrrxs1s/UXiX9qEp02I/AAAAAAAABdg/LWXiWJB_WpI/s1600/4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7X5Zvrrxs1s/UXiX9qEp02I/AAAAAAAABdg/LWXiWJB_WpI/s320/4.JPG" width="78" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">(prompt written) I think it was a violation </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">of privacy.&nbsp; They invaded the personal</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">apace of many many people. Violated</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">their houses and privacy.</span><br />&nbsp;</td></tr></tbody></table><br />﻿<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ov7_mkT0Wdo/UXiX94AuxPI/AAAAAAAABdk/VNv0hU1vXQI/s1600/5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="83" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ov7_mkT0Wdo/UXiX94AuxPI/AAAAAAAABdk/VNv0hU1vXQI/s400/5.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">my thoughts are that was good idea. Some should be the need to feel protection in Boston. You never know what one of those terrorists was in their home.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">people wouldn't be safe in their own environment. They would</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">be really scared.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dnBzYvJRcSw/UXieTB2qbhI/AAAAAAAABeY/hUe7I5Xvpfc/s1600/8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dnBzYvJRcSw/UXieTB2qbhI/AAAAAAAABeY/hUe7I5Xvpfc/s320/8.JPG" width="138" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">(prompt) My thoughts on the </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">subject is that since people</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">were seriously injured and</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">even killed they need to figure out</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">who did this. Searching</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">peoples homes is totally</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">necessary. Just to be safe.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />﻿<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_js37todhsg/UXiX-DJAQfI/AAAAAAAABds/bR7bQCebu_E/s1600/6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_js37todhsg/UXiX-DJAQfI/AAAAAAAABds/bR7bQCebu_E/s320/6.JPG" width="139" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I feel that what happened in boston</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">was necessary to do. I feel that</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">&nbsp;they were taking every precaution</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">needed to keep the community safe.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">My thoughts feel like they aren't</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">invading privacy they are just</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">doing their job to protect everyone.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9yzMCCjcL20/UXiX-MIc9II/AAAAAAAABd0/KyT-FWxXeJs/s1600/7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="78" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9yzMCCjcL20/UXiX-MIc9II/AAAAAAAABd0/KyT-FWxXeJs/s320/7.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I think it does violate privacy and freedom but do to</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">the bombing its for the best. Therefore,</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">I do believe its necessary.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2547758299939333107.post-43270201037889675332013-04-23T19:19:00.002-07:002013-04-23T19:19:51.984-07:00Teachers are Big BrotherOkay, many teachers are great teachers and not evil big brother. But so many of us went through "the system", trained to think nothing but (or nothing at all) that we become the system.<br /><br />I'm doing all I can to fight the system...peacefully.<br /><br />But some are so entrenched...well....just let my image below "speak a thousand words" to you. It is from the NEA magazine. My jaw went agape.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eQ3AlRQHSSk/UXdBKt03HoI/AAAAAAAABdE/7vlat7pRpgs/s1600/omgccss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eQ3AlRQHSSk/UXdBKt03HoI/AAAAAAAABdE/7vlat7pRpgs/s640/omgccss.jpg" width="419" /></a></div>3rseduc / handsinthesoilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03218555891546800241noreply@blogger.com0